“In addition to support from the U.S., and the central government of Iraq in Baghdad, seven additional nations – Albania, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Italy, France, and the United Kingdom – have committed to helping provide Kurdish forces urgently needed arms and equipment,” said U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel.

Kurdish troops have been engaged in fierce battles with militants from the Islamic State since June when ISIS began taking over cities in Iraq. Kurdish forces have held their ground in some areas with help from the Iraqi central government and U.S. air strikes.

ISIS extremists say they seek to establish an Islamic caliphate that stretches over Iraq and Syria. The group has alarmed the international community with barbaric acts such as the beheading of American journalist James Foley.